Kukla's Korner Hockey

“That first week, some people were saying I was done for the season, some saying maybe I was done for my career,” Shanahan said. “One week stretched into two and two weeks stretched into three. I started to wonder who was right. And then suddenly it went away.”...
Like football, hockey has a culture of athletes playing hurt, but the National Hockey League has tried to take a more cautious approach on concussions since the mid-1990s, when several star players sustained serious injuries. League officials say the N.H.L. has been studying concussions — hoping to publish its results next year in a medical journal — and assembles its team physicians at least once a year to discuss the latest findings….
“I happen to think the N.H.L. has shown some leadership in some regards, establishing a study group and committing time and energy to the issue,” said Dr. Karen Johnston, a concussion specialist at the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute who has treated some of hockey’s most famous concussion patients, including Mike Richter and Eric Lindros. “Just by looking into an issue, you keep the attention focused on it.”